EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT NANO SIZE AND BULK WO3 ENRICHED BY HDPE COMPOSITES ON ATTENUATION OF THE X-RAY NARROW SPECTRUM

Abstract

The X-rays of the narrow-spectrum N-series ranging from 40 kV to 150 kV were used to de¬termine the radiation attenuation ability of a new category of a polymer composite fabricated for shielding purposes. High density polyethylene was synthesized through a compression molding technique, and incorporated with various filler amounts (10, 15, 25, and 35 wt.%) of bulk micro-sized WO3 (Sample A), two WO3 nanoparticles 45 nm (Sample B), and 24 nm (Sample C). The WO3 filler was identified and characterized using X-ray diffraction and a transmission electron microscope. The mass distribution of the chemical elements of the syn¬thesized composites was determined by energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The obtained results of the different attenuation parameters revealed that the particle size and weight fraction of WO3 particles have an outstanding effect on the X-ray shielding ability of this composite. The experimental measurements of the mass attenuation coefficients were compared to the theo¬retical values tabulated in the NIST databases XCOM and FFAST. The mass attenuation coef¬ficient was increased with the increment of WO3 wt.% as well as with the decrease of the WO3 particle size. This improvement in the attenuation parameters of the NP(C) composite sug¬gests their promising applications in radiation protection at the diagnostic level.